The “Stoned Ape” Theory

What caused our earliest human ancestors to rapidly evolve larger brains and advanced cognitive abilities compared to other primates?

The “stoned ape” theory proposes a controversial idea – that the ingestion of psilocybin-containing mushrooms was a key factor in the evolution of the human mind.

The doubling of the human brain over a relatively short period in evolutionary terms – can, to this day, not be explained.

From crafting tools to developing language, the leaps in our evolution are astounding.


Could psychedelic substances be the catalyst?

First hypothesized by psychedelic pioneer Terence McKenna in the 1990s, the stoned ape theory speculates that the addition of psilocybin mushrooms to the diet of early hominids triggered the mind expansion and increased brain activity that contributed to the rapid development of human intelligence.

Psilocybin has been shown to create hyper-connected brain states, fostering creative thinking, visual acuity, pattern recognition and potentially accelerating cognitive evolution.

Regular consumption could have led to enhanced vision, increased sexual activity (leading to greater reproduction rates), and eventually, the development of language and imagination.

While the use of psychedelic plants by ancient people is well-documented, most academics remain skeptical of the stoned ape theory due to lack of direct fossil evidence.

However, most psychoactive compounds leave no traces in skeletal records.

Modern research shows neurobiological links between psilocybin usage and increased brain plasticity or connectivity, which lends indirect biological plausibility to the theory.

However, the model remains highly speculative and cannot be definitively proven.

The stoned ape hypothesis shows how psychedelics have been intricately linked to the human story.

And while some details may remain lost to prehistory, it continues to inspire new ways of thinking about human consciousness and our ancestors’ evolution.